Organizing the Kitchen

"This just in, Canon Point and Shoot has officially bit the dust. Owners mourn their loss as they continue to save for an SLR. Please bow your heads for a moment of silence. Memorial services will be held Thursday where the canon point and shoot will be laid to rest."

FYI: I have no camera other than the one on my phone, so the pictures are going to be either bad, fuzzy, or non-existent. Sorry for this, but I really appreciate your understanding.

Did you set any New Year resolutions? I did. It was to finish organizing my house and stop putting it off. I decided to do the kitchen first because it is where we spend the most time. Here it is in all it's messiness. Don't judge people;) I am really good at a lot of things, but organization is not one of them. So, I am working on it. A lot of it has to do with the inside of the cupboards.

Like Cupboard #1:

Cupboard #2 looks pretty good right now. It usually is way out of hand. I started working a little on it, but it still has a long ways to go.

Cupboard #3

But I also have this ledge that EVERY thing gets dumped on. I am still trying to figure out how to stop that.



















My sewing table is right by my back door. I like it here because then I can sew while the kids play outside or inside and still keep an eye on them. Unfortunately, it also gets very messy.















The top of the refrigerator is a clutter magnet too. I also hate how messy it looks with everything hanging on it.

This area use to house our microwave, but we put in one above the stove. Now it looks like this and I am on a mission to change that;)

AFTER:

The ledge: cleared off, but still not completely sure how to make sure it stays that way. I did fix something for hubby that you will see tomorrow that will help keep it cleaner. I will also be adding a big basket in the middle to put fruit and veggies in that don't need to be refrigerated so they aren't scattered along the counter.

Top of refrigerator and the outside of the refrigerator. How I did that will be explained below:)

Where microwave use to be.

This is a close up of how I organized the paper clutter on the refrigerator and any where else. I call it the "hanging folder center" It has folders for every person in the house. Coupons, mail, shred, recipes, misc. I got the idea HERE. Simplify 101 did a promo that if you signed up for their newsletter, you got one free. So, I have a command central binder, but it didn't cover all my needs/wants. The hanging folder center didn't cover all my needs/wants either. So, I use both and it is working out great for me:)

 













Cupboard #1

Cupboard #2
(still trying to figure out how best to organize it).

Cupboard #3















Here is my sewing table. When not in use I will cover it with the cover that came with my sewing machine. The cover has 3 very large pockets. I put everything I can into the pockets to clear off the table. I also pinned the excess wires up so you can no longer see them hanging at the bottom. Eventually this will get painted a different color and have new hardware. I am still deciding what color to do.

I still have a long ways to go, but I am feeling like I made a huge dent in the clutter/organizing department. I know a big step is to put things back immediately after we are finished, but sometimes that's easier said then done at my house;)

Organizing SOS

Tomorrow I am revealing my kitchen organizing project. Stay tuned on Tuesday and you can check out my laundry room reveal. I have been hard at work getting things organized around this place. I did finish my charging station so cords have all been put into one location. I am really excited with how my house is coming together.

Simplify 101 has been a huge help with this endeavor. I first saw them when they did a give away on Centastional Girl's blog. I have spent lots of time reading the articles. I signed up for one of their seminars, but I decided to cancel because I have been having so much success on my own. Just from using the tips given in their newsletter, 2 freebies they gave me, and the articles on their web cite, I was able to really understand how to get more organized.


Here are a few things I learned along the way that are not on the cite:

1. Plan exactly what you want the space to look like, how it needs to function, storage you will need, etc. Plan EVERYTHING. Then purchase any storage containers or items you may need to create that space. It was a pain to have to go to the store to get something I needed to finish while I was still in the middle of the project. Plus, it left a bit of a mess that I couldn't get cleaned up until I had everything. Sometimes I didn't know what to do, so I browsed the storage solutions at Target and Wal-mart. It got me thinking of ways that I could improve the usage of space.

2. Square or rectangle containers work best in kitchen cupboards. They just organize better and fit closer together so you get more usage from your space.

3. Do a little bit at a time. My kitchen was really over whelming. You will see this from my photos tomorrow, but it needed a lot of work. But instead of trying to do it all at once. I did one area at a time. It took me 3 days to finish it because I did a little each day. I organized all the counter tops first. That way I would have room to work when I did the cupboards.

4. Lastly, just do it. I kept putting it off because I didn't know where to start. Eventually, I just started and did one counter top at a time. When I saw how things were coming together, it got me excited to continue.

Cleaning Up

I have been "cleaning up" my side bars. They were starting to look a little cluttered:) Just click on the button and you will be taken to that page.

Also, I would like to start featuring Y-O-U! So, click on "Get Featured" on the side bar and find out how.

Also, I have been cleaning up my home. Here are a few things I did yesterday. My living room has no over head lights. We have been using 2 small lamps, but we needed more light. Thankfully, my good friend let me borrow 2 floor lamps she is not using.

I moved this stand into the guest bedroom and put this floor lap and plant in it's place.

Then I cleared off the desk

by adding this book shelf here to put the printer and Cricut on. I have plans to make THIS charging station to go on the empty shelf. The bottom shelf has my daughter's puzzles and magazine holders.

I also added another floor lamp:) Much better lighting. I am happy.

Organizing

I have been organizing my house. Although some before pictures I will NEVER probably not share with you (too embarrassing)! I did think this was a safe one to post.

BEFORE

Our coat closet is the storage area of what ever the kids decide to through into it.

 We also put our shoes there too!

AFTER

$4 at target. A pink one for the princess and a blue one for the prince. I did vinyl with their names on them as well.